I mentioned a few months ago that at a gathering of community organizing groups in Little Falls, one of the prime topics on people’s minds was financing.

Because banks had tightened credit, worries were rising that entrepreneurs were going to have a tough time getting backing to launch new ventures that might help pull the economy out of its doldrums. One of the people expressing interest at that “Friends in the Field” gathering hosted by the Initiative Foundation was Michou Kokodoko of the Minneapolis branch of the Federal Reserve Bank.

Kokodoko was looking for help finding enterpreneurs he could survey to see how the finance question was playing out. Kokodoko found some and wrote about his conclusions in a report that my colleague Paul Tosto highlights in his MinnEcon blog.

So where are today’s entrepreneurs finding startup cash? Kokodoko got a small sample but from what he could tell, the answer seems to be their own savings.

About the blogger

Dave Peters directs MPR’s project on community journalism, looking for ways Minnesota residents are making their towns, cities and neighborhoods better places to live. He joined MPR News in 2009 after more than 30 years as a newspaper and online reporter and editor.